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Reviews of Things Seen and Unseen
“An
ordinary year, a typical parish, a fascinating read.” --Episcopal
Life “Gallagher juxtaposes personal sagas brilliantly with the church year...A beautifully rendered portrait of the day-to-day.” --Kirkus
“Gallagher’s
account is more than that of a woman rediscovering her faith in God. It is
also a glimpse into a sort of practical mysticism.” --Booklist “Faith
is not about belief in something irrational or about a blind connection to
something unreal. It’s about a gathering, an accumulation of events and
experiences of a different order... the longing a soul has to find its
shape in the world.” (From Things Seen and Unseen) “Whether
writing about her brother’s battle against cancer, talking to homeless
men about the World Series, or questioning the afterlife (“One world at
a time”), Nora Gallagher draws us into a world of journeys and
mysteries, yet grounds them in a gritty reality. She braids together the
symbols of the Christian calendar, the events of a year in one church, and
her own spiritual journey, each strand
combed out with harrowing intimacy. “Gallagher
writes of faith and its meaning, in the generous language of uncertainty,
suffering, grace and commitment, and, more than anything, with trustworthy
honesty. “Thought provoking and profoundly perceptive, Things Seen and Unseen is a remarkable demonstration that “the road to the sacred is paved with the ordinary. “The
deep serenity that suffuses Gallagher’s work, the lyrical cadences in
which she writes, do not blunt the sharp edges of what she discovered in
her quest for meaning.…” |